Vénus à la pomme, Musée du Louvre

“I express myself like bergamot in the morning air. The filtration understood by no one else, is what is important. Amid social struggles, the longing for justice and freedom, the inalienability of the individual: a fragrance!" Odysseus Elytis (Greek poet, Nobel prize winner, originally from Lesvos)

Many stories try to guess the identity of the golden apples and their origin.

The goddess Eris engendered discord.

Here is the key to the Garden of Hesperides: bergamot.

Her name is a mystery.

Some lamiaceae use it, the monard,  mint; natural sources of linalyl acetate.

she is confused with pear or kaffir lime.

Her beauty remains in her fragrance.

Citrus aurantium spp. Bergamia, the Latin of botany informs : the bitter orange is its rootstock, a nuptial hybrid of grapefruit and mandarin.

I

Pamplemousse Erotique, Salvador Dali 1969. 

Bergamot is a myth, a forbidden fruit.

She was my odyssey.

 Scylla, photo by Pierre Bénard.

This journey begins in the Strait of Messina against Scylla, guardian of the Tyrrhenian Sea.

Statue de Scylla, photo by Pierre Bénard. 

Bold, strong soul, I do not fall.

With the Dioscuri, the waters of Charybdis are concentrated.

 Les Dioscures, Jean Cocteau 1958

From the villa of St. John, the fields of Calabria reign.

The path to the tree of life is a thousand steps.

A contemplative stop naturally is necessary.

Along the sea, the honorable houses rub shoulders, the lovers embrace.

On the slope, the Aspromonte makes the asphalt tremble.

In front of, a gorgon petrifies you by its splendor: Sicily.

 Etna photo by Pierre Bénard

There, where the blood stains the oranges and Etna the tattoo of its ashes.

”Tattooed Blood Orange, Amanda Wachob”

Then, the horizon is cyan.

The Ionian Sea and the sky merge.

The air is drier, warmer, jasminy.

It carries diatonic melodies punctuated by tambourines.

Petit-grain bergamotier by Pierre Bénard

You have been stung by the Tarantella! She weaves her web.

 Archangel Saint Michel, Reggio di Calabria by Pierre Bénard.

An archangel invites you to enter the orchard of the Madonna.

Fleurs de bergamotier Zagara by Pierre Bénard

The bergamot tree is androgynous.

When the tree is woman, the origin of this culture, her skin is extremely thin and her branches fragile.

She is called in the Italian language "Feminello".

Vigorous, when the tree is a man, he is called "Castagnero".

Today, their differences disappear and the major production is "Fantastico"!

From the end of March to the month of May, its immaculate flowering creates a snow white.

Flowers of Hermes and Aphrodite, only one in a hundred will bring forth the fruit.

The citrus, a hundred grams, reaches its maturity in winter.

It will be harvested from November to March.

During this season, the epicarp undergoes thermal shocks.

It is transformed from a green color to a yellow.

Divers cultivars de bergamote by Pierre Bénard.

Chlorophyll disappears to reveal carotenoids.

The molecule linalool, it, fades to become its ester, linalyl acetate.

During processing, the essential oil offers olfactory nuances.

At the beginning of harvest, its smell is fresh, herbaceous and aromatic, reminiscent of Provence.

For me, definitely Mediterranean, it reminds me of the large green basil and a green apple aroma that blossoms in some olive oils.

 Huile essentielle de bergamote Pellatrice début de récolte by Pierre Bénard.

At the end of harvest, the smell is more juicy and fruity with pear accents that I detect in some roses.

This is due to the appearance of acetates, that of nerol and geraniol.

"Pelatrici" or "Sfumatrici", the extraction machines will also define the range.

 Extraction à l’éponge 1 by Pierre Bénard. 

My revelation was the product of the so-called sponge technique, traditional and by hand.

A radiant essential oil, pure cologne, prohibited.

 Extraction à l’éponge 2 by Pierre Bénard

I was sensitive to furocoumarines, suave notes that remain over the days.

Calabria and its sun leave indelible marks in your heart and on your skin.

Bova Calabria, photo by Pierre Bénard

Bergamot inspired me to write from my heart.

If I had to  convey the scent of her perfume, she would smell like a tear of love.

 

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Guest Contributor Pierre Bénard, Perfumer, OSMOART, perfumes, colors and sounds.Photo credits: Pierre Bénard.(use and reproduction prohibited)

Pierre has written four articles for CaFleureBon : Life is a Sliptream of Perfume (2010)  Out of Africa : A Scent (2011) Journey, La Vie en Rose(His Trip to Bulgaria) 2012 and Tuberose A Love Story(2012). As we celebrate our 8th Anniversary, I wanted to share his poetry, perfume and art with new readers-Michelyn Camen, Editor-in-Chief

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Note: When Michelyn contacted to write about bergamot, I wanted this  article to be published in Calabrian dialect. On the one hand to thank them for their warm welcome for a year, and on the other I think that we must live intrinsically the material to have knowledge-Pierre

Odysse Nel Paese Di Bergamotto : Eroismo & Virtu (Calabrese)

Tanti fatti ci sunnu supra a nascita di "meli d'oru" e supra e soi origini. A dea Eris fici nasciri sciarri.Chista è a chiavi du giardinu di Esperidi: u bergamottu. U so nomi non si sapi i undi veni.Certi laminaci usunu, u monardi, a zicca; cosi naturali di acetatu i linadili. Deformi, idda è 'mbischiata ca pira o ca cumbava. A cosa bona rimani 'ndò sò sapuri. Citrus aurantium spp. Bergamia, u latinu da forma botanica: u rangiaamaru e u porta innestu è comu nu matrimoniu tra u pompelmu e u mandarinu. U bergamottu è 'na cosa speciali, nu fruttu proibitu. Fu a mea odissea. Stu viaggiu ncumincia 'ntò strittu i Messina cuntra Scilla, custodi du mari Tirrenu. Curaggiusu e anima forti, jeu non cadu. Grazi ai Dioscuri, l'acqui i Cariddi sunnu chini. Da villa i San Giuvanni regnunu i campi ra Calabria. U caminu pi l'arburu 'nda vita dura milli passi. N'à firmata mi si penza esti forzata. Lungu u mari, i villi ri signuri si stringiunu 'ndà, i 'nnamurati su 'mbrazzunu.'Ndà scinduta l'aspromunti faci tremari l'asfaltu. I n'da banda u gurguni ti 'inghiaccia ca sò billizza: a Sicilia. N'da aundi u sangu culura i purtualli e l'Etna ti tatuaggia chi so cinniri. E allura u tramontu si culura i cianu. U mari Joniu e u cielu si fundunu. L'aria è sicca, è cadda e sciaura i gelsominu. Si sentunu sunari i tambureddj. fusti pungiutu ra tarantula! E idda faci a ragnatela. L'Arcangelu ti dici mi trasi 'nto fruttetu ra Madonna. L'arburu ru bergamottu esti 'ndroginu. quandu l'arburu è fimmina 'nda nostra cultura, a so' peddi è fini e i sò rami sunnu debuli. 'nta lingua taliana è dittu "Femminellu". Quandu l'arburu è n'omu, si rici "Castagnaru". Oggi, sti differenzi scumpariru e a produzioni migliori è "Fantasticu". A fini i marzu finu o misi i maggiu, i soi sciuri creanu 'na nivi janca. I sciuri i Hermes e i Afroditi, sulu unu su centu faci u fruttu.  L'agrumi i 'nu centinaiu i grammi diventa maturu 'nto 'mmbernu. Si cogghji i novembri a marzu. Duranti sta staggjiuni a so scorcia subisci 'nu mutamentu. si trasforma da culuri virdi a culuri giallu. A clorofilla scumpari e cumparunu i carotenudi. A molecula i linalolu, si tramuta 'ndo soi estiri linalicetatu. Quandu si lavura, l'ogghjiu essenziali profuma i megghjiu. Quandu 'ncumincia mi si cogghjii, avi n'odori i friscu d'erba e atri profumi chi ricordanu a Provenza. A mia chi sugnu mediterraneu, mi ricorda  l'odori du basilicu virdi, u sapuri ra puma virdi e ceri oli d' uliva.Quandu finisci a raccolta, avi n'odori più succusue pijù forti cu n'uduri i pira e i rosi.Chistu è duvutu all'acetatu chi sunnu u nerulu e u genariulu. "Pelatrici" o "Sfumatrici" sunnu i machini i l'estrazioni pi l'ogghjii essenziali. A mea sperienza fu ca tecnica ra spugna ch'esti na tecnica antica e manuali. Quest'ogghju essenziali è radiusu, un profumu puru e proibitu. Jeu sugnu sensibili ai furucumarini, chi sunnu sciauri duci chi si mantenunu pi parecchi jorna. A Calabria e u so suli lassunu signi 'nto corie e 'nta peddj e non si cancellunu mai. U bergamottu mi fici cunsumari assai inchiostru. Si jeu putissi fari u so profumu e a soi concentrazioni, saria comu 'na lacrima d'amuri.